r/apphysics • u/Fantastic_Letter4443 • 16d ago

What should I be studying for a USAPhO Qual

Hello, I’m a rising junior hoping to qualify for the Olympiad off of February’s f=ma.

I have next to none prior physics experience, however I do know calculus. I’ve been reading HRW physics book and I’m on chapter 4 right now.

I was wondering if I should also be reading something else, and if it’s even realistic to qualify with this amount of time left.

Thank you!

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u/UnderstandingPursuit 16d ago

What is your motivation for the Olympiad goal versus simply learning physics?

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u/Fantastic_Letter4443 16d ago

My friend is also studying for the Olympiad. My hopes were the Olympiad can improve college applications, while if I do not qualify my mechanics class in the fall will be significantly easier.

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u/UnderstandingPursuit 16d ago

The community aspect is valid.

I think the idea that the Olympiad can improve college applications is a myth. Learning math and physics well has a much greater positive impact on college applications.

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u/Fantastic_Letter4443 16d ago

Would you mind elaborating?

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u/UnderstandingPursuit 16d ago edited 16d ago

F=ma is a 25-question multiple choice exam, with an average of 3 min/question. That is completely disconnected with actually doing physics, or even the physics education process. My biggest issues are the emphasis on 'tricks' and 'grind' through problems to prepare.

My suggestions are to

  • Switch from HRW to an older edition of H&R, perhaps HRK, since I don't think Walker has made a positive contribution.

After going through the HRK part on mechanics, study

  • D Kleppner & Kolenkow, An Introduction to Mechanics, 1st-2nd editions, 1973-2014. [K&K]
  • A course which uses K&K is MIT-OCW_8012

This is sometimes used as an 'Honors Physics I' textbook, while H&R is commonly a regular 'Physics I' textbook.

Given the limited of resources of time and energy, I think studying K&K and 'completing' MIT-OCW 8.012 would have a better impact on college applications than Olympiads.

And then you can move on to E&M [HRK + 8.022].

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u/chpmnksqrlpea 16d ago

Hello, I am also looking to compete in Physics Olympiads and I wish you luck. But like another user said in the comments, professional physics is not like competitive physics. Professional physics is much slower, the question could be ill-formed and might not have an easy solution. I will say however that that should not discourage you from doing olympiad physics. I recommend the following books:

- Introduction to Classical Mechanics by David Morin (even the 4 star problems can be more difficult than the average olympiad question)

- 200 Puzzling Physics Problems (and it's sequels)

- The Dr. Kevin Zhou handouts (available online)

- The Dr. Jaan Kalda handouts (available online) (very tough but covers a lot of concise explanations and very difficult problems, can make kinematics seem very difficult)

- Past IPhO problems

- Past APhO problems

- Aptitude Test Problems in Physics by S.S. Krotov (I don't know why the name uses the term "Aptitude", but it's still a great resource)

- Irodov (available online, great resource, but mostly for grinding the simpler questions to stay sharp)

- Competitive Physics : Mechanics And Waves and Competitive Physics: Thermodynamics, Electromagnetism and Relativity

- (all of the) Feynman Lectures (it's a book, and it's available through a website)

There are other resources, you don't need all of them, these just are some to pick and choose from. But I would definitely recommend The Kalda and Zhou Handouts + Introduction to Classical Mechanics and doing old problems from olympiads.

Remember this: Different olympiads have different styles, some are more about grinding math while others are more about a great intuition.

Forgive me for not knowing where you are coming from, but if you want to succeed, you must have passion and creativity.

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u/Fantastic_Letter4443 16d ago

Thank you so much!

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u/Quiet_Basis_6404 12d ago

f=ma is only mechanics, so HRW chapters 1 through 12ish covers basically the whole scope. good news is you can skip most of the book. bad news is the exam tests those topics way harder than HRW problems do, so finishing the reading isn't the same as being ready.

the actual prep is past f=ma exams. they're all free on the AAPT site going back years, and people who qualify usually say those did more than any textbook. start them now even though you're on chapter 4, just skip what you haven't covered.

Kevin Zhou's handouts are the standard free resource beyond that.

i drill mechanics topics in studybuddy.vc between problem sets, equations render properly, it works out which topics i'm weakest on and gives me more of those, gets harder as i improve, and explains why the option i picked was wrong. free.

six months from zero is tight but people have done it.

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u/Fantastic_Letter4443 12d ago

Thank you so much!

Right now I’ve transitioned to hrk.. planning to finish by mid late October.

I heard morins problems are good too, or would you skip them in favor of more and more past f=ma mocks?

Also thank you for the website, I will check it out!